April's Together Retro Theme: Elkin's Eccentric Extravaganza

[CFFJR]

Went with Army Men & FMV, because why not?

[Ack]

I don't own a Neo Geo or any modern system

do you have a PS1 or Saturn or Dreamcast or PS2 or PSP or DS or Xbox or Sega CD? These all have Neo Geo ports. I mean technically you could get away with the many NG games that were ported to SNES, Genesis, Game Gear and Game Boy even. While I kind of agree that NG is that "safe choice," here, it's also safe because it'd be hard to NOT own a console that has ports of NG games on it.

Yeah, pretty much. Some of your options include things like most Samurai Shodown, Fatal Fury, or King of Fighters games from the early '90s to 2003, King of the Monsters, Neo Turf Masters, the Metal Slug series, Windjammers, Puzzle Bobble, Super Sidekicks, Aerofighters, Baseball Stars, Ghost Pilots, etc. And that's only if you count the MVS. If Elkin is allowing anything that held the Neo Geo name, that means Neo Geo Pocket and Pocket Color games are all in the mix, along with Neo Geo CD and Hyper Neo Geo 64 titles. Shoot, add in homebrew, and even stuff like Columns becomes available because it was done up as a homebrew release on the Neo Geo CD in the 2000s. The amount of options here are huge.

[marurun]

Heck, a bevy of Neo Geo titles are available on Steam and Virtual Console for Wii and WiiU.

[ElkinFencer10]

I didn't feel bad having a Nep option because I knew it wouldn't win. Although it is with a heavy heart that I have to tell you all that I've just learned that Megadimension Neptunia VIIR has been delayed until May for North America.

[alienjesus]

Let's talk FMV games.

I feel like everyone is thinking FMV games and going "Oh, that's for 'classics' like Sewer Shark, Night Trap, or Markie Mark's Make My Video", and you'd be right.

But it's also for games like this:

Resident Evil:

FMV example: https://youtu.be/r_dm4lHuj2w?t=42s

Star Wars Dark Forces 2: Jedi Knight

FMV example: https://youtu.be/JmD-HlPAVTw?t=1m56s

Shinobi X/Shinobi Legions:

FMV example: https://youtu.be/PvkjHxwq7ko?t=18s

Myst:

FMV example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SbgxJotjf0Q

Road Rash:

FMV example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPPrGv56HAY

The Need for Speed:

FMV example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2bNDfR_QtU

Command and Conquer:

FMV example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7kTaO1czuk

Twisted Metal:

FMV example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1b_-Rgq6nrU

Wing Commander (series):

FMV example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RpxItq_r7to

The Horde:

FMV example: https://youtu.be/8zHBnQTSbOo?t=29s

Mr.Bones:

FMV example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7S59THdDa8

Warhawk:

FMV example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVgcR5aLVMU

Here's a weird one, although it is from 2000, so just outside the range. You can probably get away with it though:
Suzuku Bakuhatsu:

FMV example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7YWJDefhXQ


Also, you can play the entirety of Plumbers Don't Wear Ties on the internet, so there is that: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjMAG5IDnek

[ElkinFencer10]

Yep, those all count! That last one is indeed outside the date range, but it's weird as hell in all the best ways, so that's definitely a valid choice.

[Xeogred]

90's RTS and Neo Geo.

[BogusMeatFactory]

Ladies and gentlemen of Racketboy, I beseech thee. Vote for FMV games! These are my reasons as to why.

1. I ask you to look into the very spirit of together retro. One of the core tenants is to encourage others to go outside of their own comfort zones and play games that they are not entirely familiar with, to share with others and to grow.

FMV games are the pinnacle of working outside of your comfort zone! They encapsulate one of the strangest times in video games, merging the growing pains of 3D games and using live actors to convey a story!

How many of you have spent a lifetime playing Neo Geo games and RTS games? Why not move into undiscovered territory?

2. FMV games stem from one of the most diverse array of genres ever! There is literally an FMV game for every possible genre. These styles appeal to more modern storytelling approaches like Gabriel Knight 2: The Beast Within, a genuinely enjoyable adventure game masterfully written. They can also appeal to the arcade lover of old with shooting gallery FMV games like the Crime Patrol games or Space Pirates. They can be played and beaten quickly and easily and offer fun.

3. FMV games contributed to some very historically important moments in video games. Myst brought about one of the biggest PC gaming phenomenons that brought a huge swathe of people into gaming. It used FMV to convey are human emotion and was an excellent tool to tell a story cheaply and effectively.

Night Trap brought about the beginnings of the ESRB! Its use of horror tropes and violent imagery brought the government hammer down and was a fascinating insight into how violence in games have shaped it's future.

4. The bad are so bad they are good and the good are so good they are great with FMV games. The level of quality truly varies with FMV games and that is not necessarily a bad thing. Fans if Mystery Science Theater 3000 know just how magical bad movies can be. The same can be said of video games. Be it the scene eating acting of Christopher Walken in Ripper, or the enticing mystery of Riven, FMV games can evoke emotions unlike any other whether they intend to or not.

5. You won't be playing FMV games alone. You will have me by your side to enthuse and encourage you along. I have had a lifetime of experience with the style and can give you anything and everything that you need to succeed with the style. No one on the forums has played as many FMV games as me and i can assure you that I can find exactly what you need on the platform that you need.

LET'S DO THIS AND MAKE TOGETHER RETRO HISTORY BY IMMORTALIZING FMV GAMES!

[Xeogred]

I think stuff like Resident Evil or others with a cutscene or two for FMV is a HUGE stretch... but maybe it's just me. Point and click adventures is what came to mind to me, or games like you the player actually trigger an FMV scene by interacting with something in game, not just reaching a forced cutscene. I get the vibe others were thinking that too honestly. If a cutscene gets them in that seems kind of too broad?

[Nemoide]

I voted for Neo Geo! I have a Neo Geo Pad 2 for PS2 and need an excuse to play me some Art of Fighting until I actually somehow beat it or go insane! Plus a couple World Heroes games I never beat! And I've been eyeing more!

I'm not really a fan of RTS games, but I used to play a ton of Warcraft II and Starcraft back in the day. I never beat the original Warcraft so I *could* try to do that, but I'm not really inclined to bother. I'm not a fan of FMV games. I beat Sewer Shark and Night Trap and I'm mostly satisfied with that. I *could* play Double Switch or Corpse Killer, but those games have a pretty bad "fun-to-difficulty" ratio. I think I have the first 2 Army Men games somewhere and I've never beat them. I remember thinking they were fun. It could be worthwhile, but I'd have to do some digging to find those discs.
I'd love to play Hyperdimension Neptunia but I don't have a PS3 or Vita. I'm hoping to get those at some point, but IDK if that'll happen by April.